SHREVEPORT GRACE CHURCH
2970 Baird Rd., Shreveport, LA 71118
CHRIST ALONE - SCRIPTURE ALONE - GRACE ALONE
January 13, 2008
SUNDAY
Scripture Reading/Prayer: Psalm 81 (Mike)
Call to Worship: ‘’Precious Jesus! Friend of sinners”’
Scripture Reading/Prayer: Ephesians 3 (David)
Hymn: # 495- ‘Unsearchable Riches
Message: THE NEW HEAVEN AND EARTH- Rev. 21:1-9
Hymn: #511- ‘Face to Face’
Hymn: # 6 -‘Come, Thou Almighty King’
Scripture Reading: Job 5 (Layne)
Hymn: # 36-‘A Mighty Fortress is our God’
Message: MORE THAN CONQUERORS- Deuteronomy 3:1-17
Hymn: # 410-‘The Banner of the Cross
WEDNESDAY
7:00 PM- Mid-week Service
Nursery care available for all services for ages 4 and younger.
Ken Wimer, Pastor- ( (318) 687-4943
E-Mail: pastor@shrevegrace.org
Web Site: http://www.shrevegrace.org
Audio Messages Available On-Line; Updated weekly
Radio Broadcast: 9:00 AM (CST) Sunday on KWKH;
AM Radio 1130, Shreveport, LA area or LIVE streaming at http://www.kwkhonline.com/common/gap_streamer.php
CALL TO WORSHIP
(Tune: #291-‘Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah’)
1- Precious Jesus! Friend of sinners;
We, as such, to Thee draw near;
Let Thy spirit now dwell in us;
And with love our souls inspire;
Fill, O fill us, Fill, O fill us
With that love which casts out fear (Repeat)
2- Matchless Savior! Let us view Thee
As the Lord our Righteousness;
Cause each soul to cleave unto the
Come, and with Thy presence bless.
Dear Immanuel, Dear Immanuel
Feast us with Thy sovereign grace (Repeat)
3-Open now Thy precious treasure:
Let the blessings freely flow;
Give to each a gracious measure
Of Thy glory here below;
Loving Bridegroom, Loving Bridegroom
‘Tis Thyself we want to know. (Repeat)
4-Come and claim us as Thy portion,
And let us lay claim to Thee;
Leave us not to empty notion,
But from bondage set us free;
King of glory! King of glory!
We would live and reign with Thee.
CHRIST’S WORK ACCOMPLISHED AS PROPHECIED
“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.”
Daniel 9:24
PROSELYTIZING VS. PREACHING THE GOSPEL
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e are constantly bombarded with news of crusades, outreach, and ‘missionary’ programs that are promoted under the banner of evangelism. Yet, in comparing methods and message used with the Scriptures, sadly, these are nothing more than proselytizing, even as Christ declared of the religious organizations in His day- Matthew 23:15-“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.”
1. Where in the Bible do we find an example of Christ or apostles sending in teams before hand to organize an ‘evangelistic’ event or ‘festival?’ The Gospel was spread as the Lord in sovereignty moved His servants from place to place, city to city, not by religious campaigns, but individuals proclaiming the truth as it is in Christ (Luke 9:3).
2. Where in the Bible do we find an example of modern day ‘evangelists’ using popular stars, testimonies, and contemporary singing groups to fill stadiums and attract crowds? The Lord Jesus and his apostles went forth preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, commanding sinners to repent and submit to the Lord Jesus alone. The Gospel is not an attraction, nor are sinners solicited by entertainment or invitation. It is a proclamation of how God can be just and justify sinners, accomplished fully by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ alone, Romans 5:9-11. Only the Spirit of God can give sinners a true interest in Christ and His sacrificial death, and this is done only through the faithful declaration of Christ as the sovereign Savior of His people. Campaigns, testimonials, and invitational systems have nothing to do with the true message of the Gospel, and are not methods that we find ordained of God in His Word (Matthew 28:19,20).
3. Where in the Bible do we find an example of our Lord Jesus or the apostles ever using follow-up discipleship programs to ensure that any who ‘made decisions’ held to their commitment? The Ethiopian Eunuch was sent on his way rejoicing, because the Lord had opened his heart and taught him of Christ (Acts 8). The problem with today’s message is one of what the sinner must do to find favor with God. The Gospel declares what God has done through His Son’s obedience unto death to save a people chosen from eternity (Ephesians 1:4-7). If any are saved, it is because the Lord Jesus paid the full ransom for their sin, and now in hearing Him proclaimed in truth, the Spirit of God draws them to Christ in repentance. When it is God doing the work, He keeps those He has saved, justified, and reconciled by the death of His Son! KEN WIMER
BORN OF GOD
“Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:13.
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n the regeneration of a sinner, there is an allied power fighting against the power of God; there is Satan, the god of this world, in the sinner’s heart; there are the allurements of the world, all uniting to prevent the Lord from accomplishing the good pleasure of His will. But when the appointed time comes, the stronger man armed enters the sinner’s heart; makes him willing in the day of His power; brings down his lofty looks; abases his proud and hard heart; lays him in the dust and upon the dunghill, at the feet of the dear Redeemer; and He exerts His power, not by creature might nor by creature power, but by the power of God.
A sinner is born again by the power of God Himself. Sinners in a state of nature cannot take to themselves this power; they must be born of God. Lazarus had no power in himself to rise from the dead; neither had his sisters or friends any power to raise him. And we may further say, but with all solemnity, there was no power in the sighs, and groans, and tears of Jesus, as a man, to move Lazarus unto life.
Where is the power then? In Christ’s eternal power and Godhead. Then behold it; He speaks the word: “Lazarus, come forth!” And we see the dead come forth, bound hand and foot in the grave clothes. So, when sinners are converted to God, the Spirit of the Lord regenerates the heart as on the day of Pentecost. If we are born again it must have been the power of God to begin the work; the power of God to maintain it; and the power of God to complete it. If we have not the power of God, the soul is dead, religion is dead, and all is dead. JOHN KERSHAW- 1862
SANCTIFIED
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elievers are sanctified through the one offering of Christ. They are holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, sanctified through the offering of the body of Christ, once for all. This is the foundation of their conformity to God; and the more they are under the teaching of the Spirit the more they know of the things that are freely given to them of God; the more are they renewed in the spirit of their mind, and the better they understand that they are complete in Christ, and that He is made of God unto them wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. JAMES HALDANE